Good to see....

Dissent!

It is encouraging to see that Venezuelans aren't rolling over and submitting to Chavez.

TV station chief: We are not afraid of Chavez

CNN's bullet points from the article:

• NEW: Demonstrators march again despite police use of water cannon
• NEW: U.S. calls Venezuelan action an attack on freedom of expression
• Venezuela investigating Globovision, now the only opposition channel left
• Venezuelan minister says, "CNN lies to Venezuela"; CNN denies allegations

I was surprised by this piece of news:

U.S. imposes new sanctions against Sudan

CNN bullet points:

• NEW: "Giving Khartoum more time is not the answer," diplomat says
• NEW: House Speaker Pelosi says Bush did the right thing
• NEW: Sudanese ambassador says government is working for peace
• U.S. imposes punitive action against 31 companies and three individuals

I guess all of the kids handing out anti "Fidelity Investments" fliers around Boston (and I'm certain many other metropolises across the U.S.) and "Save Dafur" information has paid off on some level.
Now the investors are being forced by the hand of the government. It's shameful it should have to come to that, however business and ethics are by no means symbiotic.

Sheehan: She Finally Figures it Out.

I had to add this post when I saw the article because, I found it to be honest and courageous on her part.

Anti-war mom Cindy Sheehan gives up her protest

I have complained about Cindy Sheehan quite a bit in the past. I'm not going to necessarily retract anything I said, because what's done is done. I feel Sheehan was very much over run with emotions, and saw this tragedy as a calling to add purpose to her life. Unfortunately, I think she ignored a lot of important things (her family, her son's honor, and ultimately her own well being) because she got caught up in the excitement and the fame. I see her words essentially as an admission of this.

The most poignant portion of her letter which details her resignation from the anti-war front, was the following passage:

"I have tried ever since he died to make his sacrifice meaningful," she wrote. "Casey died for a country which cares more about who will be the next American Idol than how many people will be killed in the next few months while Democrats and Republicans play politics with human lives.

Cindy Sheehan has finally realized that she was used.

I feel very bad for this woman.

Memorial Day in Maine

I went home for my Mother's birthday today. I joined my parents and Aunt Gigi for some sirloin steaks cooked out on the gas grill, with some salad and baked potatoes. A very pleasant, and tasty meal. The weather was beautiful up in Sabattus and I spent a good deal of time sitting in the rocker on my parent's deck.

This evening I caught most of the Red Sox game with the Cleveland Indians. It was a bit sad to see Trot Nixon playing for the other team, but the warm reception that the Chowder-heads gave him was nothing short of amazing. You could tell it meant a lot to him as he tipped his hat to Fenway. Nixon apparently was hoping to stay in Boston unfortunately it wasn't what the cards had in store for him.

I think maybe in the next couple of days, just perhaps I may throw this dastardly cold off of my back. The coughing is becoming more infrequent. I think I'm going to credit the Pabst as the primary "healing-agent".

Too many Peking Dumplings.......

Well, it's Sunday evening and my Memorial day weekend has gone by way too fast.

I helped Jason move into his unit today, and his brother Scott was down assisting too (THANKFULLY!). Jason of course went up to his storage unit in Maine to haul down some more furniture.

Tomorrow I'll be heading up to see the Fam. It's mom's b-day and I actually need to get an early start, so off to beddie-bye for me here in a second.

Purchased a cd on a whim the other day which is a self-titled effor by a group called "This is me smiling".

I really liked it on the first few listens, sort of a clash somewhere between Ben Folds Five and post-pinkerton Weezer. (comparing them to Weezer's blue album in any way shape or form would be too generous as it is simply put...too brilliant) The music is quite creative and quite good and layers very well. My one complaint, which I came to realize after a few listens, is that the vocal stylings are a bit too repetative and predictable on several of the songs. It isn't that the lyrics are bad, it is just that they are delivered in these tyipically 4-5 word groupings where the first four words are rather deadpan, and say... the fifth ends on a high or low note.

Here's a montage of some live performances of several songs off the album... there wasn't a lot of "high quality" material to pick from on youtube... so this is about the best I found.

Drinking a Pabst... sitting in the boxers...

This is one of 3 cans of PBR left over from the 18 pack I bought a few weeks back. Turns out, I apparently like cheap assy beer more than I anticipated.

I still am coughing fairly frequently. No rest for the weary. It hasn't been that I haven't been doing the rest, heavy liquids and chicken soup thing either... It just hasn't worked all that well. Perhaps the PBR will serve as the antidote for this poision bent on filling me with mucus madness.

Mmmmmm.... Mucus.

I managed to do the dishes and some other housework today which had fallen to neglect due to my summer's eve ailments. After, I went into Boston and caught the end of K.T. Tunstall and all of Guster's free show at the Hatch shell. It was WBOS's annual "earthfest". I've been to several of them now through the years, this was by far the most people I've seen out for one of the free shows. The amount of people reminded me of the fourth of july as people were still thickly gathered beyond the snack stands behind the main grassy area. It took me about 15 minutes to walk through the crowd from the Hatch shell to the back of the grassy area, which is where I camped out stategically next to a lamp post. During the first half of Guster's act it wasn't uncommon to see (by my count) five kids body/crowd surfing at a time. Guster actually told the crowd to stop throwing water bottles in the air between songs. The lead singer said, "I realize you probably think you're recycling by throwing the bottles, but can you please recycle them by putting them in bins instead". Whatever he said seemed really witty at the time, and I'm probably robbing it of this essence in re-telling it. Most of the crowd actually cheered this comment, myself amongst them. This actually seemed to help as very few were thrown for the next half hour. The crowd mellowed until what became Guster's closing song (I believe unintentionally- There was NO encore) which was "The Beginning of the End" from "Ganging up on the Sun". It was the sort of an ideal song to shut down the show, but I fully believe there may have been more if the crowd had been more controlled. They went nuts on a final guitar solo and must have emptied about two water bottle bins, chucking them all in the air and it rained down like confetti. Instead of the typical "Thank you very much, you guys have been great", the lead left the stage with exasperated, nervous laughter saying "Come ON you guys!!!" and then never came back. The crowd was mostly harmless I suppose (as long as half full bottles of water don't hurt too much when they rain down from twenty feet in the air) but I can see the irritation of the band and the organizers with this being an "Earthfest". Guster put on a good show overall... I'm never usually a overly enthusiastic fan of the free concerts because they draw a lot of crowd gasers, and non fans, and I feel it robs a bit when there are many people who aren't giving the music the appreciation or attention it deserves. But it is free, and it was beautiful out, so I can't complain too much.

So I found this really funny SNL sketch on youtube....



As it turns out, it is only sort of funny, and I just posted it because Scarlett Johansson is in it, and ummmmmm... I've got nothing.

I'm down with Friday....

My cold is slowly getting better...

Went to the S&S deli with Kate tonight. I had fish & chips, and they were surprisingly good. I wasn't knowing quite what to expect... I held off on ordering clams or any other bottom feeders. (The temptation was strong however....)

Thought I'd post this latest McCartney effort. I'd be surprised if his new album "Memory Almost Full" will live up to "Chaos & Creation in The Backyard", which was a breath of fresh air from McCartney, many thanks to Nigel Godrich. The new effort goes back to David Kahne who worked on Driving Rain, but supposedly has worked with the Strokes and Sublime on critically acclaimed efforts. We'll see.....

The new single "Dance Tonight" is a happy little ditty, simplistic lyrics and catchy. It is a mandolin number which makes it stand out a little more. You tube allows for comments when you search for the videos, and one comment said: "Dance Tonight is a nice song that would do well in the context of an album, however I'm not certain if it is single material." I would tend to agree with this. Something about the video, reminds me about Harrison's "Got my mind set on you" from the late 80s, although it is definitely much more low key than that song.

Anyway McCartney's connections will at least get him some attention. Natalie Portman makes an appearance in the video as this strange sort of spirit that dances around mischievously as McCartney plays his mandolin.

Paul McCartney's designer daughter helped him snag Natalie Portman to star in new music video

Bleeeaaahhh.......

It definitely turned out to be a cold I was suffering from and not allergies. Hopefully I'll feel better tomorrow. I plan to try and go into work early.

ANYWAY....

I don't plan on putting much into this post.

I thought I'd post this good commentary piece from boston.com on the whole "Jimmy Carter" calling Bush the worst president. Not to defend W by any stretch, but the article couldn't have put it better:

Look in the mirror, Jimmy Carter

From the article:

Christopher Hitchens this week recalled arguing with Eugene McCarthy, a lifelong liberal who had voted for Ronald Reagan in 1980. McCarthy was unapologetic. Carter, he said, "quite simply abdicated the whole responsibility of the presidency while in office. He left the nation at the mercy of its enemies at home and abroad. He was the worst president we ever had."

Well... There's another 2 liters of ginger ale with my name on it. Gotta go!

Ahhh CHOOOOOO!

I thought my allergies were just wicked bad this year, however it seems that I may be coming down with a cold. I should probably head to bed, right now. That being said I'm going to make this into one of those incredibly weak posts where I just put up something stupid I found on youtube.



hmmm... So the Hill-dog wants a campaign song....
It's as though Hillary is just asking for Stephen Colbert to suggest a REALLY ridiculous song, and for him to advertise that all his viewers should go on and vote multiple times.

This could be Hillary's demise....

Let's see we could do,
"I'm a bitch" by Meredith Brooks
"It's raining men" by whoever sings... It's raining men,
"The Facts of Life" from 80s girl fueled sitcom... The Facts of Life
"Big Balls" by AC DC
"Witchy Woman" by The Eagles
"Get Back" by The Beatles
"You're with stupid now" Aimee Mann
"Young Lust" by Pink Floyd
"My humps" by The Black Eye Peas
"Man Eater" by Hall and Oates
"Milkshake" by Kelis

Or perhaps....

Body, wanna feel my body, body, baby, such a thrill, my body
Body, wanna touch my body, body, baby, it's too much, my body
Body, check it out, my body, body, baby, don't you doubt, my body
Body, talking about my body, body, baby, checking out my body
Listen here
Every man wants to be a macho man
To have the kind of body always in demand
Joggin' in the mornings, go man go
Work up to the hill's top, muscles grow
You can best believe meHe's a macho man
Glad he took you down with anyone you can
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey
Macho, macho man
I gotta be a macho man
Macho macho manI gotta be a macho
Macho, macho manI gotta be a macho man
Macho macho manI gotta be a macho
Body, my body, body, wanna feel my body
Body, baby, body, body, come and thrill my body
Body, baby, body, body, love to funk, my body
Body, baby, body, body, it's so hot, my body
So hot, yeah my body
Allright
Everyman ought to be a macho, macho man
To live a life of freedom, machos make a stand
Have your own lifestyles and ideals
Access the strip of competence, that's the skill
You can best believe that he's a macho man
He's the special god son in anybody's land
hey, hey, hey, hey, hey
Macho, macho manI gotta be a macho man
Macho macho man
I gotta be a macho
Macho, macho man
I gotta be a macho man
Macho macho man
I gotta be a macho
Macho, macho man
I gotta be a macho man
Macho macho man
I gotta be a macho
I gotta be a macho man
I gotta be a mucho mucho, macho macho man
I gotta be a macho

Ideas??? Anyone..... anyone, come on now, this is an opportunity to shine.

Sadly the youtube page was mostly consumed with people suggesting legit songs.... I get the feeling it is being censored.... by Hillary's people?....naw, impossible.

Frustration.....

Madness Aside:
I watched a pretty good film tonight called Winter Passing. It stars Ed Harris as a struggling writer. It is somewhat in the vein of Wonder Boys albeit more melancholy. I would say it is more of a combination of "The Station Agent" and "Wonder Boys". If you like dramas that are overflowing with quirky characters, who each have personal obstacles to overcome, than this one's for you.

Laaaaa.....lah-lah-lah-lah-laaaa... lah-lah-lah-lah-laaaa

Lah-lah-lah-lah-LAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!

It's Friday... well technically it's Saturday AND I'm not ashamed to admit it!!!

So, first off, since copying these images to my web page probably isn't a good idea, I will provide you a link. I know, I know, extra work... but you know those "business types" always looking for a profit. Anyway these pictures are from the 5k, amusingly when they snapped me as I ran, it looks as though I'm trying to smile, but it actually is just me running around with my mouth open much like a panting dog. I do manage to keep my tongue inside though, most of the time. There is also a photo of myself, Tim and Brandy shivering around before the race too.

My Multiple Myeloma 5k

Next on the agenda, Interpol has a new album coming out! I'll certainly be the first in line to pick up their third effort. I'll probably go see them in concert again too when they finally make their way over here. To hear their first single and link to some reviews and commentary: Interpol, Our Love to admire Spinner.com

Well... the futon arrives later this morning, so I should go to bed!

Gotta get up early and clean up some dust bunnies.

A new post.

Well, Wednesday has come and gone.

I hope you're all happy. I know I sure am. By getting the wicked ways of Wednesday behind us, we are just that much closer to the weekend. Ah yes, the weekend, a time of sitting around on my a$$ and contemplating... well contemplating nothing really. After all, on the weekend I really don't like to burden my self with thinking. It just clutters up the gray matter, do you know what I'm saying?

Nothing is more of a downer than using your noggin when you can better use your time picking your nose, eating cheese doodles and collecting mass.

I ordered a new futon which should arrive on Saturday. I took Jason's apart, and now I have virtually no room to put it. My apartment will be cluttered until the end of the month, when Jason arrives to claim his furniture.

It seems they are cancelling Jericho... they finally come up with a TV show I like, and of course they cancel it. I can't believe only after one season too! There are a lot of angry fans venting on the CBS site. People are talking about petitioning it's return, but I can't help but think it will be dead in the water. Aside from Family guy and Futurama, where else has that been successful? The only reason they likely pulled those off, was that it is much easier to recreate an animated show, where the original cast isn't necessarily required. Some of the cast are well known television actors and actresses, and my guess is they won't have to wait around long before they are scooped up for a new gig.

Jericho's fate reminds me of the plight of Arrested Development. At least Arrested Development lasted three seasons, although, I think they sort of "jumped the shark" after the second season. Basically it was all downhill after Buster had his hand bitten off by a sea lion. I think they knew they were doomed at that point and so it got absurd, even by the show's own terms.

The Weekend in Brief

Friday Evening: I left work a little early since I had arrived early that morning. When I arrived in Melrose I got in the Focus and went to Kappy's to pick up some beer. John Madden was coming over to catch the Sox game so I picked up some Pabst. Little known to me Pabst only comes in bulk, or at least at this particular Kappy's that was the case. So now I have at least a dozen cans left to drink. I had one tonight before I wrote this belated weekend summary.

The Red Sox game was abysmal. (However Sunday & Tonight's game more than made up for it!) Tim, Brandy, Steve (Tim's Brother) and his girlfriend Laura were at the game. They had scored some Green Monster standing room tickets which aren't easy to come by. John and I met up with the crew at TC's lounge in Back Bay after the game, where Tim's sister Jen and her boyfriend George had also convened. Yes, a rarity, another person in their twenties named George.

We drank cheap beer (Miller High Life-there wasn't too much to chose from) in this quirky bar. TC's didn't pan out to be quite the dive I thought it would be. It actually was very cleverly decorated and had a very fun atmosphere.

The unfortunate portion of this story is that Tim stayed too late at the bar (he got sucked into conversation with Steve), and perhaps I wasn't quite bitchy enough about the imminent possibility of missing our train. (Tim and Brandy spent the night at my place in Melrose) So yes... we missed our train. We took a cab back to Melrose, and ended up going to bed around 2:30. Early the next morning we ran a 5k. The 5k was the Multiple Myeloma benefit that Millennium sponsors every year. This year's race was held at Carson Beach for the second time, formerly it had been located along the Charles. On four hours of sleep and little to no training for the race, I finished with my worst time to date at 27:40. Oh well....I guess it should just give me more incentive to get back into my former shape. Tim however, managed his best time which was a nice achievement.

Later we met up with Kate at the Brown Sugar Cafe (a Thai restaurant on Commonwealth Ave) and had a delightful lunch. Tim & Brandy had to head out because Brandy had a babysitting job back up in Saco.

It was good to see Tim & Brandy as always. The race was fun, and it was good to do one in the company of others for a change.

It was a bit chilly out due to the wind, but it was sunny and over all was a beautiful day. I thought a fun activity would be to go walking around Castle Island, and perhaps get a Soft-Serve ice cream at Sullivan's while we were there. We had a blast walking around in the wind, watching people with their dogs and observing the behavior of ducks, small birds, and mutant seagulls.

When we finally got back to Melrose, my exhaustion hit me all at once, and I regretfully told Kate I would need to take an hour nap. Our evening was a restful one of napping and television. We watched Memoirs of a Geisha which I had from Netflix, which despite some mediocre reviews, I found to be quite enjoyable.

Sunday Kate and I went to lunch at Margarita's in Waltham and then went for a nice drive. We ended up in Wellesley and walked around the Wellesley college campus which was beautiful. There is a decent sized pond which the campus is situated on, and a pedestrian path wraps around it. Additionally we walked around the town. Kate saw a small book store called Wellesley Booksmith, and we went in to explore. They had a small used book section in the basement and I picked up a copy of John Irving's "A Son of The Circus", which I'm certain I'll enjoy. At this point my weekend more or less concludes. I glumly dropped Kate off realizing that I'd be back to work before I knew it.

Anyhow.... I should conclude. Perhaps tomorrow I'll catch everyone up with what exciting things I did today.

Delayed Thursday Post...

My laundry would soon be complete, and I begrudgingly searched for my discarded dungarees and hastily pulled them up. I was adorned in my sweat stained white T shirt, and my hair was tasseled and held askew with a sweat. My appearance matched my mood, tired, aloof, and disheveled.

I had to go get the laundry and haul it back upstairs for a vigorous ironing and folding session. I decided I may as well go ahead and throw some crap out since I have to go down stairs. It would save my self a trip up and down from the third floor. After collecting various items that had fulfilled their purpose, I decided to throw them in a trash bag and descended the steps, bound for the dumpster.

Coming out of the building a moth buzzes frantically near the entry light, appearing to exude irritation. The moth of course is just doing what it what moths do. I’m not quite certain what exactly that is, the frantic nature of the moth. Perhaps they are desperately trying to acquire something just out of reach. Perhaps the light is an imagined foe, something so vile that it must repeatedly attack it, with the only means that it has. Maybe it is simply mesmerizing, an addictive high, and the moth twitches with sheer ecstasy repeatedly slamming into the luminescence, experiencing titillating pleasure. I’m sure that I could Google the actual cause; however it probably wouldn’t be nearly as interesting or romantic as the various imagined ideas I may have.

When my attention is directed away from the moth, I look straight ahead at the dumpsters. Wedged in between the two dumpsters was a plush large teddy bear looking very sad and alone.

Now it is really sad the irrational thoughts that a foolish plush bear can put in your head. I couldn’t help but wonder how it got there, and why it didn’t actually make it into the dumpster.

I imagined a rotten parent punishing their child for some misdeed. The little girl crawls out of bed at night fearful for her companion. She looks out at the bear, which is adorned with a patriotic bow tie. The bear’s sad, dark, eyes have the uncanny ability to take on the emotion that one imagines it might be feeling. The little girl sees her own fear reflected in the glimmer of the incandescent light.

Another scenario: The bear was a gift from an ex, and it was stashed there symbolically. When the ex-boyfriend drives into the parking lot to try and repair a broken relationship, the first thing that will catch his eye was the giant bear he won for his former love on a beautiful day at the amusement park, and his heart fills with pain and despair.

My favorite scenario is simply that the owner can’t make themselves put the bear in the trash. There is something about those open arms, those big eyes, and plush fur that just calls out “love me… please?” The owner knows that it is just stitching and polyester, however it is just too difficult to see the demise of this lovable toy. With hope in their heart, they wedge the bear between the dumpsters hoping that someone else will see what they see. Perhaps someone will take the bear and wash it, and then give it to a child so it can be loved again.

With this sentimental thought in my mind I return to the apartment building and finish up my laundry.

It will be a busy weekend, and I’ll need my rest.

When Covers potentially drown the original.

Temporarily, or hopefully not at all.

On one hand, it is nice that Green Day chose Lennon's "Working Class Hero" to cover, then on the other hand, tons of teenagers probably won't understand that this was John Lennon's baby and not some sell-out punk band's that arguably spawned the whole Blink 182/Emo movement. (Which, on the whole puts out forgettable crap). That being said, in a few years I suppose Lennon's version will likely regain it's throne. I will say of the neo-punk movement, Green Day is the most memorable, perhaps because they were arguably the first mainstream group to turn the grittier punk sound into "pop". And I did like Dookie.....

For a comparison, enjoy the two youtube clips. Lennon's and then Green Day's. Note there's cursing.. probably not work place appropriate.






I suppose I have to give Green Day a bit of credit for bringing Lennon's music to a new generation which might not otherwise hear it. Additionally, they did end the song with Lennon's version, which was a nice touch.

The Cycle that is life....

This weekend felt like a window into summer. The leaves are coming out on the trees here in New England and the blossoms are finally wowing us with their fragrant beauty.

My weekend, my weekend was eventful. Next weekend should be eventful too. Here's to events...

Any to summarize, my friend Jason Duplissis came up from Orlando. He's planning on returning to the Boston area in June. Low and behold, Jason chose to become another tenant in the lovely Melrose Lincoln terrace. While the weekend was one of errands for Jason, it was not without fun. Jason, Kate, and I went to Artu in the North End for supper on Saturday. We ate like wealthy beings. Jason ordered an absurdly expensive wine, with holding all knowledge of the price until we had consumed it. It was delicious... probably the best Red Wine I may have ever had. It was Turn Bull, and I believe a 2003 bottle? Anyway, when he did tell me the actual price, I sort of gagged. I joked with Kate that the taste she had must have cost at least a dollar. (It was funny because it was true) Jason of course footed the bill on the wine. Additionally we had a nice appetizer of mussels. Kate had a nice "Rape Broccoli" Alfredo, Jason had Lobster Ravioli, and I had Calamari and mussels in a spicy light tomato sauce with linguine. For desert I had tiramisu, while Jason and Kate both got these chocolate cakes with raspberry sauce, which were super moist, and super rich. It would have been a relatively reasonable meal in the North end if it had not been for the wine. It was very enjoyable and I left warm, with wine in my belly. I was unaffected by the cool spring air even though I was under dressed in a short sleeve shirt.

In other news I bought another chair for my balcony. It almost matches my old one which is good enough. Exciting huh?

I watched "Brick" tonight and enjoyed this film noir. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who you'll probably remember from 3rd rock from the sun (The kid) plays a brooding loner with a quick wit. The dialogue in the film is too smart for its own good, but that is part of this movie's charm. These kids are smoother, smarter, quicker not to mention much more stylized than the average adult. Think of a less flamboyant Tarantino film with crafty camera work and a palate of grays, browns, and 1970s veneer providing a backdrop. The plot is clever, leaves you guessing, and a bit too fantastic for reality. Gordon-Levitt is a captivating leading man, and this film will likely pave the way for a successful career. I see on IMDB that he already has several films in production. The film ends to the droning notes of The Velvet Underground's "Sister Ray". For an entertaining rental, I recommend it.

I made it to the gym tonight... how about that? Lets see if I can do it again tomorrow. My lab notebook is all caught up, save for some minor tweaks... yeeah for me.

Anyway... Enough babbling about non interesting crap.

I bid you good night.

FRIED CLAMS!!

Yee haw... decadence.

Ate supper with Scottie and Caprio at Kelly's Roast Beef. Caprio was an unexpected surprise, it was good to see him. We talked loosely about getting together and going to play mini golf at the T-rex place on Rt. 1... the place that is supposed to have nice soft serve. Kate, you're invited... whenever we get around to doing it.

My old friend Jason Duplissis arrived tonight to begin an apartment search as he is moving back to Beantown. He is staying at my place while he searches. Jason followed suit and picked up a clam plate at "Liberty Bell" in Melrose when he arrived later.

Anyway... tomorrow should hopefully speed on by. It will be sort of a half day for me because I have a meeting at Jillian's after lunch. Pool and drinks on the company... should be good.

I missed the Republican debate tonight unfortunately. The article from CNN probably summarizes things quite well however.

Giuliani bucks GOP field on Roe v. Wade

Story Highlights (From CNN)
• Former New York mayor says it would be OK if court let abortion ruling stand
• McCain alone in backing funding for embryonic stem-cell research
• Three candidates say they don't believe in evolution (Hmmmm.....)
• Romney says he changed his mind on abortion, but Reagan did too

By the way, I stand corrected... and I'm not certain that this is clear to the American people as he is so often painted as a moderate: Abortion is not one of the issues McCain has flip flopped on "Alone among the top three contenders, Arizona Sen. John McCain has a career-long record of opposition to abortion."

If he is able to project this it could help him win the Republican nomination, however, I feel he will struggle the most against Hillary out of the top contenders. Giuliani is my favorite and the most accomplished (when it comes to governing) and the most qualified.

Jason directed my attention to a great George Carlin stand up routine, after I was complaining about redundancies in the ten commandments... there is a bit of swearing but if you can check it out.. It is both funny... and yet wise too.

Walking through the wonders of Cambridge & Somerville

So Kate & I went to the S&S deli in Inman Square. We've been there a handful of times now and it always is enjoyable. One of these times I will get a dessert because they look phenomenal. I had Chicken Skewers which were pieces of chicken breast, pepper, onion, tomato and mushrooms on a skewer, and cooked in a teriyaki based glaze. I had fries and a generous house salad which came with it. Kate ordered a Western Omelet that came with a bagel, fresh fruit, and hash browns. The S&S serves breakfast all day. After eating we walked through Inman towards Harvard Square, but instead of going straight down Cambridge St. we hung a gradual right which brought us to Porter Square eventually. It was a nice walk, the weather was great. Since I didn't make it to the gym it was a great way to burn off the extra calories from my generous dinner portions. From Porter we went on to Davis Square, and then finally headed home after a brief conversation with a disabled man, who told me that my full and proper name was Georgie. He explained that people called him Mike but his full name is Michael, and my "real name" Georgie is just like Michael. I felt amused and sad all at the same time.

Tomorrow should be another fun day of getting caught up in documentation at the job, and perhaps running some size exclusion chromatography. Someone came to do some routine maintenance on our most frequently used HPLC (which was working fine) and now it won't work. Yah! YAH! I suppose it's nice to have a legitimate excuse to concentrate solely on my reports, however it is troublesome knowing that it will just mean more work for me later.

Well.... Going to the "new" Kelly's at Station Landing (Wellington Station - the old Krispy Kreme building) for supper with Scottie Thursday. Should be Yum-O as Mrs. Rachael Ray might say.

I have some dishes to do... So I should cut this off.

May your Thursday be Merry and Bright....

So........

So It's Tuesday, and I spent about two hours dealing with the good old MBTA this evening, just call me Charlie.....

These are the times that try men's souls. In the course of our nation's history, the people of Boston have rallied bravely whenever the rights of men have been threatened. Today, a new crisis has arisen. The Metropolitan Transit Authority, better known as the M.T.A., is attempting to levy a burdensome tax on the population in the form of a subway fare increase. Citizens, hear me out! This could happen to you!

(Eight bar guitar, banjo introduction)

Well, let me tell you of the story of a man named Charley on a tragic and fateful day. He put ten cents in his pocket, kissed his wife and family, went to ride on the M.T.A.

Chorus: Well, did he ever return? No, he never returned and his fate is still unknown. (What a pity! Poor ole Charlie. Shame and scandal He may ride forever. Just like Paul Revere.)
He may ride forever 'neath the streets of Boston.
He's the man who never returned.

Charlie handed in his dime at the Kendall Square Station and he changed for Jamaica Plain. When he got there the conductor told him, "One more nickel." Charlie couldn't get off of that train.

(Chorus)

Now, all night long Charlie rides through the station, crying, "What will become of me?!! How can I afford to see my sister in Chelsea or my cousin in Roxbury?"

(Chorus)

Charlie's wife goes down to the Sculley Square Station every day at quarter past two, And through the open window she hands Charlie a sandwich as the train comes rumblin' through. (Chorus)
Now, you citizens of Boston, don't you think it's a scandal how the people have to pay and pay? Fight the fare increase! Vote for George O'Brien! Get poor Charlie off the M. T. A.

(Chorus)

He's the man who never returned. He's the man who never returned.
Ain't you Charlie?

Who ever decided to use "Charlie" to represent the new MBTA fare card is about as bright as a mud brick. But it is fitting really....

So... really for once, the delay I faced was sort of, not the MBTA's fault. Anyway, I went to the gym tonight, got a quick bite to eat at the deli across the street and then headed back into the Porter square station for my subterranean trek back to Melrose. When I exited the escalator that is so long it just about makes your ears pop, a lovely MBTA worker just about tore my head off when I tried to go through the gate.

"THERES GONNA BE SHUTTLE BUSES!!! YAH NEED TAH GO TAH HAVAAAAHD!!"
I replied... "OK.... so what... do I need to walk to Harvard or something?"
She shouts back "Naaw...THE TRAIN AINT GOIN ANY FURTHAH THAN HAVAAAD STATION, then yous get off and theres gonna be shuttles availaahble, Theres ah fiah at Charles"
I reply "Ummm Ok..."

From here it only gets better... when I get to a bench to wait, every two minutes a "robotic" voice comes on over the loud speaker basically saying Charles/MGH station is closed due to a fire. But then, after this is on loop for a few times, the story gets more elaborate. "eeeeeeep.... may I have your attention... may I have your attention.... a homeless man has set a fire underneath the longfellow bridge.... due to this the boston fire department has shut down all traffic on the bridge... the t has followed the fire department's advice and also shut down the trains... this train will run till harvard square where shuttle buses will be available... thank you....eeeeeep" So now I wait in anticipation of the train to arrive, when it does I board.
"ATTENTION PASSENGAHS....snfrsaffk.. ATTENTION... This train is goin tah Harvahd square, then you'll get on a SHUTTLE... snerffff.... SHUTTLES WILL take you to BRAAHDWAY..Sorry for any INCONVENIENCE."
So after our conductor yells this a few times the train gets going and then stops somewhere in between Harvard and Porter square.
The conductor continues to remind passengers about the shuttles and all, just in case any one forgot.
We get to Harvard square finally, and then the conductor says "ATTENTION PASSENGAHS, fah service to DOWNTOWN... take tha train to KENDALL... THERE A SHUTTLE WILL TAKE YOU TO PARK ST."
So now the train sits at Harvard station for fifteen minutes, and the conductor continues to relay his message.
Of course the train gets going, stops at Central, and sits there for ten minutes... the conductor continues to relay his message.
The train resumes its commute again, and of course stops somewhere between Central and Kendall. We sit there and the conductor yells at us about the fire and the homeless guy... some kids start bitching, but eventually they get bored and it turns into a philosophical discussion on religion. I try and read my book. The static infused messages from the conductor continue.
The train moves on to Kendall, when we get off there are hordes of people waiting for it to turn around and go back to Alwife station. Everyone gets train... a T worker with an orange vest yells... Shuttles Upstaaihs SHUTTLES UPSTAIRS... COME ON PEOPLE... UPSTAIRS!!! Of course Kendall station empties out on two streets. I ran up the stairs in front of everyone and luckily picked the right street. The masses followed.
We poured out into congested streets (traffic was backed up because of the bridge closing) a traffic cop blocks the crosswalk for us and we cross and proceed to wait for the shuttle. The cop next informs us that the shuttle is not going to Park St. at all, but in fact is going to Lechmere, where we'll have to hitch a ride on the Green line and go to Park St. I've already made up my mind to just walk a couple of blocks and then across the via duct to Community College Station on the orange line once I get to Lechmere, instead of going all the way back into town again.
The shuttle of course takes about 20 minutes to arrive, and when it does it is packed with people who don't know what they are doing or where they are. It takes about 15 minutes for them just to figure out that they need to get off the shuttle at Kendall and get back on the train. Once this happens we all load on, and low and behold some ditz finally figures out that she was supposed to get off too, and so we have to open the doors back up, and people need to get off the bus just so she can get out. The doors close, the bus travels about 15 feet, and an big dude at the front of the bus just goes POSTAL.... "STOP THE BUS, STOP THE BUS.. STOP THE F*CKING BUS, I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS SH&T!!" The driver slams on the breaks and throws open the door, and we all quietly watch the guy storm off into the Cambridge streets.

When all was said and done, I made it back to my apartment at 11:10 pm, after leaving the deli in Porter square at 9:00. I probably could have walked home and gotten here quicker.

I found this article explaining the event on Boston.com
Fire closes Charles/MGH T stop

So last night, surfing youtube, I found this Family Guy clip... and it made me cry... I know, I know, I have a really basic sense of humor, BUT THIS, THIS is GREAT!!

Hmmmm...

I have blog writers block, well not really, I'm just too lazy to write.

I did have a good weekend. Kate & I went to Fudrucker's on Rt. 1, which was a new dining experience for me. It wasn't what I expected, it actually was much nicer. My prior Fudrucker's experience was limited to the one in "Logan Airport" which might as well be a Roy Rogers.

I've been tired and busy, and tired and busy some more. I have been trying to manage to work the gym back into my schedule. I went twice last week, and then again today... of course I got home and ate a ton of left over Chinese food and then Chips and salsa, which probably sort of undermines my efforts.




Cookie Monster... lovable character or dangerous addict?